The Friendzone
by RozaHathaway17
Summary: Buffy and Angel have been best friends for as long as they can remember. She loves him; he loves her. Too bad neither of them knows how the other feels. OOC/AH/M for future adult content/Bangel.
1. Chapter 1

**This idea came to me when I was watching the Friendzone on MTV. I thought it would be fun to have Buffy AND Angel friendzoning each other out of fear. Emilie Brown is my amazingly amazing beta. I don't own Buffy. And just to clear a few things up that won't be said outright in the story: Buffy is 15 and a freshman in high school, along with Willow and Xander; Angel is 17 and a junior in high school. Enjoy the story! Feedback is welcome.**

**The Friendzone**

**Chapter One**

_**She said, I was seven and you were nine. I looked at you like the stars that shined in the sky, the pretty lights. ~Taylor Swift, Mary's Song (Oh My My My)**_

They had been friends since the very day she moved to Sunnydale. They grew up together, right next door to each other. They never expected to fall in love, but they did. Too bad they'll never know that they both feel the same way. They'll never know just how much it breaks the other's heart when they start dating someone new to ease their own pain….

"Buffy!" the tall brunette boy pounces on his best friend's bed, trying to wake her up. The petite blonde rolls over and grumbles something under her breath, cracking her eyes open just slightly.

"Go away," she groans, flipping back over and burying her face in her pillow. The boy smirks before tickling her sides, causing a squeal of annoyance mixed with amusement to rip out of the blonde's throat.

"Get up! Get up! Get up!" he pokes her in the side several times and she pushes him away.

"Angel!" she whines, annoyed at being woken up so early, even if it was by her best friend, aka, the man she has been secretly in love with for…well, forever.

"Come on, Buff! It's your first day of high school! We're gonna be in school together again," he whines back, annoyed that she won't get up. She rolls back over, opens her eyes, and grins up at her neighbor.

"It is exciting, isn't it?" she asks, sitting up. He grins back at her. She doesn't notice the way his eyes roam over her body in appreciation of the tight tank top and shorts she wore to bed. She'll never realize how much he loves her. And even if she does, she'll never love him back. He wishes he could wake her up with kisses instead of words but knows it'll never be. He shakes his thoughts away as she gets out of bed, stretching her tiny body like a lazy cat and smiles softly at her back. She looks over her shoulder at him.

"Out," she states, pointing to the door. His eyebrows crease in confusion.

"I have to get dressed, moron," she teases and he smirks, kissing the side of her head as he leaves the room, going downstairs to talk to Joyce. Buffy sighs, wishing he would wake up and smell the roses. She wishes he could love her the way she loves him. She walks to her closet, pulling out a pair of skinny jeans and a purple flowery blouse. She dresses quickly and then slips on a pair of black heeled booties. She grabs her school bag and hair brush and heads downstairs to grab some breakfast. She drops her bag by Angel's at the door and brushes her hair out on the way to the kitchen.

"Morning, mom," she greets her mother, kissing her cheek.

"Good morning, sweetie," Joyce replies. "Are you two ready for the first day back to school? I made pancakes, eggs, and bacon. Have a seat."

"I am so ready. High school took forever to get here," Buffy tells her mother, plunking down into a chair. Angel chuckles, sitting next to her.

"Always so impatient," he teases and she glares mockingly at him. Joyce smiles to herself while fixing plates for her daughter and her friend. She knows in her heart that they will end up together; it was obvious from the moment they met, nearly ten years ago.

"So, I'll show you to all your classes, then meet you at your locker for lunch. We can eat in the library so we don't have to sit at a super crowded table; that's what I always do, anyway," Angel excitedly tells Buffy, thrilled to be able to see her more often. She laughs at his obvious excitement and pokes him in the side.

"It's only been two years since we've been in the same school. Did you really miss me that much?" she taunts, still giggling.

"We should head out. Thanks for breakfast, Joyce," Angel states, standing up and kissing Joyce's cheek. Buffy follows, glad she doesn't have to take the bus or walk to school since Angel has his own car. They talk about stupid things on the way to school, laughing the whole time. When they pull into the parking lot, Buffy notices a slutty looking blonde girl perk up and narrows her eyes. Buffy and Angel get out of the car and the girl lets out a high-pitched squeal, launching herself at Angel and kissing him on the lips. Buffy's heart sinks down to her feet, realizing this must be Darla, the girl Angel started dating at the end of last year. She grabs her bag out of Angel's car and starts to walk towards the school. She doesn't notice Angel shove Darla away and whisper harshly to her that it was over a long time ago. Then he sees Buffy walking away and runs after her.

"Buff! Hold up. I promised to show you around," he caught up easily to her much shorter stride and put an arm around his shoulder.

"Well, you looked a little busy so I thought I'd find Willow and Xander," she answers, a little curtly.

"Buff, don't be that way," he whispers. She glances at him out of the corner of her eye.

"Don't be what way?" she snaps, much harsher than she intended.

"The way you're being," he sighs, huffily. "You always get like this when you see me even talking to another girl. God, are you jealous or something?" Buffy looks away from her crush and refuses to answer. He grunts at her lack of response but doesn't push either way.

"Buffy!" a small red-head calls, waving at her friend. "Hi, Angel." She rushes to their side and hugs Buffy, giving Angel a small wave.

"Hey, guys," Xander greets, stepping in next to Willow.

"Will, Xander," Buffy grins, hugging her other close friends. They head into the school and Angel helps the three of them find their lockers and classrooms before walking to her own class. Since they're in different grades, the only classes they have together are lunch and study hall. Buffy frowns as she watches the blonde girl from the parking lot saunter up to Angel. It's going to be a long day.

**Review? Pretty please? *hopeful puppy dog eyes***


	2. Chapter 2

**This chapter is completely un-betaed. Just cause I'm tired and don't even feel like sending it yet. I'll post the betaed version sometime tomorrow...hopefully. Joss Whedon owns Buffy the Vampire Slayer. **

**The Friendzone**

**Chapter 2**

_**All I knew this morning when I woke is I know something now, know something now I didn't before. ~Taylor Swift feat. Ed Sheeran, Everything Has Changed.**_

Buffy slams her locker closed and leans against it. Willow turns to her blonde friend and smiles shyly.

"You okay, Buff?" she asks, concern clear in her voice. Buffy sighs and blows a strand of hair out of her face.

"It's just…" Buffy starts to explain but trails off. She takes a deep breath before whispering a confession to her best girl friend, "I love Angel. And he has a girlfriend now and she's really pretty and she dresses like a hoe and he'll never look at me that way ever in our lives and I'm just sad." Understanding dawns on the red-head's face immediately.

"He loves you too, Buffy. It's obvious when you two look at each other," Willow comforts her friend. She's known they're in love with each other for a few years now but didn't want to mention it until Buffy told her, herself. Buffy grunts in obvious disagreement as Angel walks over to the two girls with Xander close behind.

"Hey, Buffster!" Xander exclaims. "Wills!" He hugs both girls and the group of four heads to the library with lunches in hand. Willow and Xander talk happily and Angel pipes in every now and again but Buffy remains quiet. The teenagers arrive at the library and walk through the doors.

"Giles!" Angel calls, already knowing the librarian. "There are some people I want you to meet. They'll probably be here as much as I am." An older man walks out of the library's office, cleaning his glasses before placing them back on his nose.

"Hello, Angel," he greets the oldest of the kids. "Welcome back. Did you have a nice summer?"

"Yeah, I did. You?" Angel answers and Giles nods. "These are my friends; Buffy Summers, Willow Rosenberg, and Xander Harris. Guys, this is Giles. He's the coolest librarian I've ever met."

"It's nice to meet you all," he responds, his English accent lacing his words. He chooses to ignore the librarian comment, not sure if it was meant to be sarcastic or not.

"Buff, why are you so quiet? You're never quiet," Angel asks, leading the group to a table and sitting down. He pulls Buffy gently into the seat next to him. Giles smiles softly at Angel, who he has come to think of as a son, before ducking back into his office. He's the only person Angel has ever told that he loves Buffy.

"I'm fine. High school's just a little overwhelming," she answers in a murmur. Angel leans closer to her, frowning.

"You know you can't lie to me, Buff. What's wrong?" he pushes. She roughly shoves her chair back, recoiling from Angel as though he was a poisonous snake.

"Nothing!" she snaps. "Drop it." Angel's normally soft, brown eyes hardened, along with his mouth.

"Fine," he grits out. Buffy joins in on Willow and Xander's conversation and Angel shortly follows suit. About ten minutes into lunch, a girl walks into the library.

"Angel," a slightly nasally voice breathes and Buffy stiffens. "There you are." Darla struts over to him and leans in between him and Buffy, giving Angel a good view of her cleavage.

"You should take me out tonight," she purrs, running her hand up and down his arm. His jaw clenches tightly, annoyed that she won't leave him the hell alone. Then he glances at Buffy, whose face has gone blank as she plays with her food. He forces a smile at Darla.

"What time should I pick you up?"

"How about we just leave from here? Right after school," her hand rests on his shoulder and rubs gently. It takes all of his will-power not to shove her off of him.

"I have to take Buffy home first so how about-" Angel starts to say but Buffy cuts him off.

"I'll walk. Go on your date. Don't let me hold you back." She stands abruptly and leaves the library. Willow immediately follows her best friend, leaving behind a confused Xander, frustrated Angel, and delighted Darla.

**~TFZ~**

"Buffy, he doesn't know how you feel. If he did, he never would have said yes to Darla," Willow rubs Buffy's arm as they lean against the sinks in the girls' bathroom.

"No, if he knew how I felt about him, he'd never speak to me again!" she cries, near tears.

"She's a bimbo. A bottle-blonde, fake-boob bimbo. And Angel's only going out with her to distract himself from you. He loves you, Buff. He just doesn't know how to tell you so you're going to have to tell him first," the red-head insists.

"She _is _a bimbo. But Angel obviously likes her. Why would he ever love me? I'm nothing special." A tear escapes the corner of Buffy's eye and she hastily wipes it away. Willow's eyes fill with pain and she wraps her arms around her friend.

"You're amazing, Buffy. How could he _not _love you?" she whispers as Buffy squeezes her waist. Buffy pulls away and wipes her eyes. She takes a deep breath.

"Let's go to class."

**~TFZ~**

**One Week Later**

"We're off to see the wizard, the wonderful wizard of Oz. We hear he is a whiz of a wiz, if ever a wiz there was, if ever, oh ever a wiz there was, the wizard of Oz is one because because, because, because, because, because, because of the wonderful things he does," Xander, Willow, and Buffy sing, practically skipping down the sidewalk to go to the Bronze. They giggle as they continue their walk and Buffy leans against Willow. Angel had been spending a lot of time with Darla over the past week and in that time Willow and Buffy had gotten even closer than they already were. Xander and Buffy had gotten a little closer as well.

"I hear the Dingoes are playing tonight," Willow tells her two best friends.

"Isn't that Oz's band?" Buffy teases her friend who blushes the same color as her hair. She nods sheepishly and Xander pokes her side.

"Our Willow's got a wittle crush, Buff!" he exclaims in excitement and Buffy laughs as Willow blushes deeper. They walk up to the Bronze and unlink their arms to pay the bouncer and get their hand-stamps that keep them from being served alcohol. They laugh as they continue their conversation until Buffy stops cold. Angel's on the other side of the club with Darla attached to his mouth. She quickly looks away and walks over to the bar to get something to drink. Willow follows, squeezing her hand. Xander trails after them and swoops in to pay for their drinks before they can.

"Thanks, Xand," Buffy smiles weakly at him. They go find a table, as the Dingoes start their set. They sit together talking and enjoying the band for a while until a tall boy with dark blonde hair walks over to them.

"Hi, uh, you're Buffy, right?" the boy asks, looking directly at Buffy.

"Yeah," she replies, smiling politely. "Hey."

"I'm Riley," he tells her. "I'm a year ahead of you but I sit behind you in study hall. I was just wondering if you'd like to go out sometime. With me…get to know each other better…or at all, really." Buffy smiles tightly. He's cute and the rambling is kind of charming. She glances over at Angel to find him glaring daggers at Riley, as Darla clings to his arm like a leech.

"I'd love to," she answers, shocking herself. She had every intention of turning him down, as nicely as possible, but when she saw that look on Angel's face, she just had to say yes. A pang of guilt hits Buffy as Riley's eyes light up in excitement.

"Do you…do you want to dance? This is a good song," he asks, holding out one hand and rubbing his neck with the other. Buffy smiles coyly and takes his hand, letting him lead her to the dance floor.

**~TFZ~**

"Angel, why do we have to go to the Bronze? I'd rather just stay in," Darla whines, running her hand up and down his thigh. He grabs her wrist and pushes her hand away from his crotch.

"You can't just blow off your friends. You already told them you were going," he replies, exasperated with her. He leads her out the door of her house and into his car. She huffs in annoyance but buckles her seatbelt to go meet Spike and Drusilla at the Bronze. As soon as the couple walks through the door, Darla drags Angel to the dance floor. They dance for a while with Spike and Drusilla, who joined them after a couple minutes, before Darla pulls Angel away from the crowd and attacks his lips with her own. Angel forces himself to return the kiss, wrapping his arms around her waist and trying to pretend it's Buffy that he's currently making out with. With his eyes closed, he almost convinces himself that he's with Buffy, until he feels the unmistakable tug of her presence in the pit of his stomach. He pushes Darla off him just soon enough to walk her practically run to the bar.

"Angel, what's wrong with you?" Darla demands.

"Nothing, Darla. Just, let's not do that in public," he sighs. She grunts and leans back against the couch, wrapping her arms around his. She tries to get him to pay attention to her, but Angel's attention is focused on Buffy. Buffy and some guy. His body tenses and his eyes narrow. They talk for a couple minutes before the boy leads his girl onto the dance floor. Angel pulls his arm out of Darla's grasp, stopping her endless stream of pointless prattle.

"I'm not feeling well," he tells her harshly. "Ask Dru to drive you home." Angel storms out of the club and throws himself into his car, slamming an open palm onto the steering wheel. He turns the key and peels out of the Bronze's tiny parking lot, nearly wiping out a shrub as he goes. He speeds all the way home and slams both the car door and the house's front door. Angel's mom jumps, looking up at her only son.

"I didn't expect you home yet," she says softly, worried she'll upset him more than he already obviously is if she talks too loud. He looks at his mom and sits next to her on the couch.

"I screwed up, ma," he tells her.

**~TFZ~**

"See you Friday," Buffy tells Riley, as Willow and Xander continue on their way home and Riley stands with Buffy on the sidewalk outside her house.

"Yeah…I'll be here at five," he replies, kissing her cheek and turning to go home. Buffy walks up her driveway and into her house. She heads into the kitchen and sits beside her mom.

"Mommy, I have a date Friday night…" she whispers.

"With who?" Joyce asks, setting her pen down and turning to her daughter.

"His name's Riley; he's a sophomore; we have study hall together; yes, he'll come in and meet you before we leave."

"Sounds good, sweetie," Buffy's mom tucks a strand of hair behind her ear and forces a smile. Buffy's eyes fill with tears and she lays her head on the kitchen table.

"I screwed up, mommy," she mutters, peeking up at her mom, who leans over and pulls Buffy into a warm hug. "I only said yes because Angel's being weird and he started dating this girl and I've barely seen him all week and he was there when Riley asked me out and I only said yes because Angel was glaring at him and I don't want to go out with anybody but Angel."

"I know you don't, Buffy. But if Angel is dating someone else, maybe it's a good idea for you to do the same. You two have been through so much together, I have no doubt that you'll stay together, even if it is just as friends. Buffy, if you love each other as much as I know you do, it will work out." Buffy leans on her mom, sniffling, and squeezes her eyes shut tight.

**~TFZ~**

"Angel, everyone in the world knows how you feel about Buffy. Except for Buffy. You need to break up with that little floozy you've been seeing and tell Buffy you love her," Katherine tells her son.

"It doesn't matter how I feel, ma. She doesn't love me. I just need to move on," Angel sighs.

"You really think she doesn't love you?" Angel nods tightly. "Angel, who held your hand when you were ten years old at your father's funeral?"

"Buffy…"

"And who was the first person to come see you after you broke your arm and had to get a cast on for eight weeks?"

"Buffy…"

"And who sneaks into your room at midnight to watch scary movies when you think I'm asleep and can't hear the two of you?" Angel grins. His mom knows about his and Buffy's movie marathons and doesn't care.

"Buffy."

"Would she do those things if she didn't love you?" His eyebrows crinkle together in thought and his mom stands up. She squeezes his shoulder and kisses his forehead, then heads off to bed. Angel doesn't know. Buffy is the most pure-hearted person he has ever met in his life. She's always the first to take care of a friend in pain. Does her compassion really mean she loves him? Or is that just the kind of person she is?

**Review please? I want to know what you all think!**


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